Italy Star’s Fitness To Be Monitored After Enforced Substitution In Inter Milan Vs AC Milan Derby | OneFootball

Inter Milan midfielder Nicolo Barella will have his fitness monitored after being taken off the pitch late in yesterday’s loss to AC Milan.

This according to today’s print edition of Milan-based newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, via FCInterNews.

Inter coach Simone Inzaghi ended up completely overhauling his midfield yesterday evening.

The Nerazzurri coach went with a quite predictable trio in the centre of the pitch.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Hakan Calhanoglu lined up alongside Italian international Barella for the derby.

Relatively early on in the second half, Inzaghi decided to take off both Mkhitaryan and Calhanoglu.

Those substitutions had nothing to do with fitness or injury. Rather, they were tactical as Milan had been overruning Inter centrally, with neither Mkhitaryan nor Calhanoglu at their best.

Moreover, Calhanoglu was on a booking. That frequently sees Inzaghi decide to take players off, particularly in big matches where there is the risk of a second yellow.

Nicolo Barella To Have Fitness Monitored After AC Milan Substitution

Inzaghi left midfielder Barella on as the last remaining member of the starting trio yesterday.

However, the Nerazzurri coach then decided to take the 27-year-old off.

Former Napoli midfielder Piotr Zielinski replaced Barella to complete the trio alongside fellow substitutes Kristjan Asllani and Davide Frattesi.

This was something of a surprise. Inzaghi was effectively going with his “second string” for the closing stages of a match as important as the derby.

But the coach revealed after the match that Barella had been dealing with a bit of a physical problem.

Barella did not visibly signal that he needed to come off the pitch. Nor was there an obvious injury to the former Cagliari man.

However, having started both yesterday and against Manchester City in midweek, fatigue could have been a concern.

And according to the Gazzetta, Inter will be closely monitoring Barella’s fitness once the team is back in training.